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At home I use a macbook and an ipad. The ipad is a consumption device- it's great for playing a casual game, looking up a recipe, and better than kindle for rea

At home I use a macbook and an ipad. The ipad is a consumption device- it's great for playing a casual game, looking up a recipe, and better than kindle for reading pdf files. It isn't really usable for programming, writing documentation, or any real work (that I do). It doesn't replace my laptop, it just does some things in a more convenient way. Microsoft's Surface looks like (for me) it could replace both the ipad and my macbook. It isn't a consumption device- it runs a full operating system. I could remote in to work from anywhere, attach it to a monitor if I wanted to work at home, and easily carry it around. It provides the convenience of a tablet, while allowing real work to be done. It even comes in pretty colors. Apple wants me to own a phone, a music player, a tablet, and a laptop all to do separate things in separate places. This isn't necessary. This is not a reversal of Microsoft's position- it's the logical next step.

YeeHaw 14y ago
I completely agree. I would love to be able to ditch the heavy, bulky laptop for a tablet that fit in my purse and still allow me to do real work.
mc32 14y ago
For me this tablet/surface could see significant demand from students going back to school this fall. As you said, it's not loger Air + iPad when you can get one device that can do both. I think it's a pretty good strategy from that standpoint. Additionally, with the Intel version being compatible with desktop apps, this should fit in with the business (corporate) environment. Of course, this is speculation, but I think it has a pretty good chance at being successful.
joeguilmette 14y ago
If they pull this off, a Windows Phone and a Surface will replace a $3000 Apple set that someone like my mom would use and love. As a deeply invested Apple user, it is nice to see Msft finally making something I might want to use.
roc 14y ago
> "Microsoft's Surface looks like (for me) it could replace both the ipad and my macbook." Things always have a way of looking like what we want them to, before we get a chance to see them. I know how it works; I spent a lot of time waiting, hoping and grumbling about Windows tablets. And what I see here, is an ARM tablet that has a real shot as a tablet - provided the Windows side stays out of the way. And a hand-waved x86 tablet that may or may not be notably improved over last year's Windows tablets. From that, you seem to be hoping the best of the ARM tablet (size/battery/usability) is implicit in the x86 tablet or vice-versa (does the ARM tablet even allow keyboard/mouse style apps from third parties?). And that's precisely what remains to be seen.

YeeHaw 14y ago

I completely agree. I would love to be able to ditch the heavy, bulky laptop for a tablet that fit in my purse and still allow me to do real work.

mc32 14y ago

For me this tablet/surface could see significant demand from students going back to school this fall. As you said, it's not loger Air + iPad when you can get one device that can do both. I think it's a pretty good strategy from that standpoint. Additionally, with the Intel version being compatible with desktop apps, this should fit in with the business (corporate) environment. Of course, this is speculation, but I think it has a pretty good chance at being successful.

joeguilmette 14y ago

If they pull this off, a Windows Phone and a Surface will replace a $3000 Apple set that someone like my mom would use and love. As a deeply invested Apple user, it is nice to see Msft finally making something I might want to use.

roc 14y ago

> "Microsoft's Surface looks like (for me) it could replace both the ipad and my macbook." Things always have a way of looking like what we want them to, before we get a chance to see them. I know how it works; I spent a lot of time waiting, hoping and grumbling about Windows tablets. And what I see here, is an ARM tablet that has a real shot as a tablet - provided the Windows side stays out of the way. And a hand-waved x86 tablet that may or may not be notably improved over last year's Windows tablets. From that, you seem to be hoping the best of the ARM tablet (size/battery/usability) is implicit in the x86 tablet or vice-versa (does the ARM tablet even allow keyboard/mouse style apps from third parties?). And that's precisely what remains to be seen.